Seth Wescott (left) of Carrabassett, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in snowboardcross, prepares for an hourlong flight with a pilot from the Thunderbirds, the U.S. Air Force's precision flying team. The two took off from Brunswick on Thursday, Aug. 23, 2012, flew to Belfast, Bangor and the Sugarloaf Mountain area before returning to Brunswick.

BRUNSWICK, Maine — Olympic snowboarding gold medalist Seth Wescott stood in the cockpit of a U.S. Air Force Thunderbird jet Thursday morning and started to descend to the tarmac — then climbed back in and, with his smartphone, took a quick photo of the dashboard controls.

“It was awesome,” Wescott deemed his flight, which took place a day before the Great State of Maine Air Show, featuring the Thunderbirds, begins at Brunswick Landing.

Just after 10 a.m. Thursday, U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Jason Koltes flew the professional snowboarder from Brunswick to Belfast, Bangor, and then around Sugarloaf Mountain — where everyone seemed to know already that it was Wescott circling the mountain for 15 to 20 minutes.

Wescott lives in Carrabassett Valley and owns a restaurant at the base of the mountain in addition to training, hosting a snowboard event and playing golf at Sugarloaf.

Story continues below advertisement.

“We took Seth up today and took him through the ringers,” Koltes said back at the former Navy base, about an hour after they took off.